Aqua Reward Credit Card - 3% cashback up to £100/year

Hooloovoo

walp wrote: »

To get back on track, Ive just realised how good this card is for holiday (overseas) spending. My Nationwide Select card does not give any reward for spending in currencies other than sterling...
This one does (and also gives the "perfect" Mastercard/Visa exchange plus no fees)

Absolutely! It seems too good to be true. Normally I have to think for a little while when deciding whether to open a new account somewhere, but this card was so good I applied the same day I found out about it.

As you say, the credit limit is low but you can always pay off the card mid-month.

walp

... and I hear that you can increase your limit after 3 months of use too..., so only a pain during the initial period of the card anyway.
I go to France for 4 weeks late September & usually spend around £500 per week, so I'll just have to keep my eye on my balance & credit it well before the limit... They will hopefully increase my limit on my return.
I really can't help thinking that it might be a case of "make hay whilst the sun shines" though, as the company may well feel inclined to revise the benefits if their returns turn out to be less lucrative than they were hoping...

td_007

If one has £500 credit limit then unless one is in a hurry to max up the cashback there is no point in either increasing the credit limit or making multiple payments/month to spend more. This is because you can get only £100 cashback which is paid annualy (£5 rounded down). This means spending £280/month will get you £100.80 cashback which will be rounded to £100 and paid on card statement aninversary.

walp

Hi td-007,
I know this well... But why use the cards' £3,334 annual spend in the UK when you spend at least that much (as I do) abroad? If I do use it in the UK, that would mean that I would have to use other cards (that pay zero reward in other currencies) abroad.
It makes much more sense for me to get my 3% in France exclusively with this card (using up only any remainder of the £3,334 per annum in the UK), and then continue to capitalise on my Nationwide Select cards 0.5% reward when back in the UK (which does still give me the "perfect" exchange rate with no fees, but pays absolutely no reward in France).
I then get the very best out of all of my plastic.
I know other cards pay more reward (such as capital One which starts at 0.5% & is linked to spending amounts), but my UK spending would not put me in a bracket higher than 0.5% anyway.
As for the Santander 1,2,3 card... I cycle to work, only use fuel for holidays & the supermarket and never shop at department stores... With the annual fee this card is not an option (at least for me, anyway)...
If anyone is in a similar boat, then I suggest reserve the Aqua card first & foremost for overseas spending... Comparitively (with the 3% reward) it lifts the value of the current euro to sterling exchange (currently 1.264 euros per £) to over 1.3 euros per £!!! To explain that, thats your 3% reward added to £1 spent = 1.03 x current "perfect" exchange rate.
This boost to your holiday spending power (admittedly only for the first £3.334 spent on the card year per) is not to be sniffed at!

Update: I see your point perfectly (and it stands for most), but in order to get all of the cards rewards out of my visits abroad, I (personally) will need to make payments before statement dates... That is until they increase my limit...

td_007

walp wrote: »

Hi td-007,
Update: I see your point perfectly (and it stands for most), but in order to get all of the cards rewards out of my visits abroad, I (personally) will need to make payments before statement dates... That is until they increase my limit...

Indeed it all depends on which cards you hold. I also have Halifax Clarity that gives £5 for min £300/month spend and no foreign transaction fees. Also, have Post Office card that has no foreign transaction fees - The Aqua now is a welcome addition:) For cashback, in UK I have the MBNA Amex (1.5% on supermarket/petrol spends) and Cap1 (1% on all spends).

Given that Aqua is only beneficial for spends of approx £3360/year - the plan is to make full use of it asap and get back to my usual card usage pattern with Halifax, MBNA Amex and Cap1 cards.

miller

OllyM wrote: »

Lenders can't see who your accounts are with. All they can see is the fact that it's a credit card account.

http://money.uk.msn.com/mortgages-and-homes/how-payday-loans-can-scupper-your-chances-of-a-mortgage

(To summarise GE money will reject applicants who have used payday loans in the past 3 months).

How do they know if you have been using Wonga.com et al? Maybe it comes under a separate category (in which case Aqua will be fine as a credit card) or any personal loan with a relatively low initial balance/settled in a short time would be spotted.

OllyM

miller wrote: »

http://money.uk.msn.com/mortgages-and-homes/how-payday-loans-can-scupper-your-chances-of-a-mortgage

(To summarise GE money will reject applicants who have used payday loans in the past 3 months).

How do they know if you have been using Wonga.com et al? Maybe it comes under a separate category (in which case Aqua will be fine as a credit card) or any personal loan with a relatively low initial balance/settled in a short time would be spotted.

I've never taken out a payday loan but I believe that they appear as a different account type on credit reports.

MiserlyMartin

walp wrote: »

Hi td-007,

It makes much more sense for me to get my 3% in France exclusively with this card (using up only any remainder of the £3,334 per annum in the UK), and then continue to capitalise on my Nationwide Select cards 0.5% reward when back in the UK (which does still give me the "perfect" exchange rate with no fees, but pays absolutely no reward in France).
I then get the very best out of all of my plastic.

Exactly what I was thinking. There are few cards that let you spend abroad and still pay cashback

trikidy

I just think that you are massively over reacting to being rejected.
I don't think you are in a position to criticise Aqua and accuse them of treating you unfair, just because they rejected you.
Think what you like.

walp

miller wrote: »

http://money.uk.msn.com/mortgages-and-homes/how-payday-loans-can-scupper-your-chances-of-a-mortgage

(To summarise GE money will reject applicants who have used payday loans in the past 3 months.

Isn't that interesting???
I would have thought that these would have been exactly the type of clients that the Aqua card (with a 35% APR) would hope to attract!
Maybe that type of customer is a step too far for them, but you would certainly think that they would prefer to collect customers less able to pay the entire monthly balance each statement...
I think that whilst this stands as evidence that the application process is not necessarily denied to those with decent earnings & fine credit histories, it also underlines the probability (in my mind at least) that Aqua will be unable to maintain the 3% reward.
This card just seems far more likely to attract those intending to make money rather than lose money!